Technology Adoption at

Public Agencies
Lilli Watson and Natalie von Turkovich • April 2022

In the US, water data are collected by a variety of public agencies each with its own
data standards, formats, platforms, and sharing protocols. There is variability not
only between different states, but also between public agencies within the same
state, and even between departments within the same public agency. This data
fragmentation makes it difficult for potential data users to find the data they need,
and once they’ve found it, to standardize the data so that they can integrate it with
other datasets. As a result, decision-makers are often forced to make judgments
without the benefit of a complete picture of their water resources.

To build an accurate water picture, public agencies

must modernize their water data infrastructure. “To build an accurate water
Modern water data infrastructure is an picture, public agencies must
integrated system of information technologies, modernize their water data
which includes common standards, formats, and
tools designed to make water data easy to find,
infrastructure. ”
access, and use. Modern water data infrastructure does not necessarily have to
be “new.” Rather modern data infrastructure is optimized to meet the needs of all
users. In some cases, the newest technology may not be the most accessible. The
rapid pace of digital innovation and environmental change cause user needs to
change rapidly as well. Modern water data infrastructure is designed to adapt to
users’ evolving needs.

T H E T E C H N O LO GY A D O P T I O N R E S E A RC H
P ROJ E C T
If there is a clear need for modern water data infrastructure, why is the pace of
technology adoption at public agencies lagging so far behind user needs? In the

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spring of 2021, the the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solution’s Water
Policy Program launched the Technology Adoption Research Project to assess the
current state of water data infrastructure at public agencies, learn more about the
process of technology adoption within those agencies, document their successes,
and identify the barriers they face when attempting to adopt new technology or
technological processes.

READ THE FULL REPORT

In collaboration with the Water Data Exchange of the Western States Water
Council, the American Water Resources Association, the American Water Works
Association, the Association of Clean Water Administrators, the Association of
State Drinking Water Administrators, and the Environmental Council of States,
the Water Policy Program team administered a twenty-three-question survey via
listservs and social media outlets, followed by in-person interviews of participants.
The results revealed technology adoption challenges unique to public agencies.
Generally, these challenges were rooted in four causes: lack of demand, necessary
transparency, competing priorities, and generational conflict.

L AC K O F D E M A N D
In the private sector technology adoption happens at a faster pace because
market demand incentivizes companies to modernize. In the public sector, there
is no demand signal. Instead, public agencies are driven by the need to reliably
deliver public services within their budget and in accordance with their mission.

N E C E S S A RY T R A N S PA R E N C Y
When the private sector fails or makes a mistake in technology development, they
don’t have to share that information with the public. But when a public agency
fails, transparency requirements often make that failure public knowledge. This
can lead to public outrage around the misuse of tax dollars, and as a result, public
agencies tend to be risk-averse.

COMPETING PRIORITIES
Private organizations can change their priorities based on a dynamic market-
driven mission and can quickly implement unilateral decisions across divisions to
support these priorities. Public agencies’ missions are often established in law and
are not as flexible as those of private organizations. Each agency has a unique
mission that it must fulfill. Competing priorities at different public agencies can
make cross-agency coordination and centralized data management difficult.

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 G E N E R AT I O N A L C O N F L I C T
Public agencies often have multiple “generations of technology” under one roof.
This causes technical and cultural conflicts and often results in resistance to
technology adoption within and between agencies. Today’s systems are not only
built upon legacy technologies, but also the thinking that created them.

T E C H N O LO GY A D O P T I O N R E C O M M E N DAT I O N S
While these challenges are significant, they are not insurmountable. This assessment
does not mean public agencies need to be more like private organizations. Instead,
public agencies need to approach technology adoption with a greater level of
intentionality than private sector organizations so that they can surpass the
barriers they face and develop data infrastructure systems that are sustainable
over time.

The Water Policy Program team developed the following recommendations for
technology adoption at public agencies based on the survey and interviews
conducted during the Technology Adoption Research Project, as well as best
practices in the field of digital transformation, and lessons learned from community
and public agency engagement during the 18-month pilot period of the Internet of
Water project.

I D E N T I F Y A N D P ROV I D E
I N C E N T I V E S FO R DATA
M O D E R N I Z AT I O N
One of the main barriers to technology
adoption identified by the survey was
a lack of funding. Currently, there is no
incentive for public agencies to carve
out portions of their limited budgets
for data infrastructure modernization.
Even though data infrastructure
modernization provides cost savings
in the long term, the benefits are not
immediately apparent and, like any
significant organizational change,
there is always a risk of failure.

Tying grants or other funds to data

Tyler Franta, Unsplash

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infrastructure modernization would provide an incentive for agencies to bring their
data systems into compliance with standards and best practices for improved data
discoverability, accessibility, and interoperability. This could include grants offered
by federal agencies as well as philanthropic and other non-profit organizations.
Grantors should be provided with
standards and best practices to
include in their grant requirements.
In addition to funding discrete data
infrastructure modernization initiatives,
these grants would also provide in-
house demonstrations of the benefits
of technology adoption. This could help
convince resistant leadership to adopt
data infrastructure modernization
more broadly and urge policymakers to
develop sustainable funding sources to
support these initiatives.

C O N N E C T I N FO R M AT I O N
D E L I V E RY W I T H P O L I C Y
O U TC O M E S
While leaders often tout “data-driven
decision-making,” participants in the study
and pilot period engagements struggled
to provide evidence of decisions directly Christina Wocin, Unsplash

informed by data. Decision-makers who

have not had access to the information they need in the past often continue to
fall back on their traditional methods of decision-making. Agencies must develop
clear avenues of information delivery to provide decision-makers with relevant,
timely, and easy-to-use data and information. To promote continued support
of technology adoption, agencies should compile evidence of how their data
infrastructure modernization efforts have directly improved or informed decision-
making.

R E S O LV E I S S U E S W I T H P RO C U R E M E N T P RO C E S S E S
Public agencies often hire contractors to build data infrastructure and tools
because they do not have this capability in-house. If specific guidance on data
standards and best practices are not provided in the contract documents, these
systems and tools may not adhere to modern water data principles and may be

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difficult to maintain or adapt to meet future needs. Guidelines should be developed
for agency procurement contracts to ensure that contractors follow modern data
principles, meet agency needs for sharing and interoperability, and build in plans
for sustained maintenance.

I D E N T I F Y A L E A D E R FO R C RO S S - AG E N C Y C O M P L I A N C E A N D
E S TA B L I S H M E N T O F S TA N DA R D S
There must be an owner—a single decision-maker who is responsible for data
infrastructure modernization across agencies or divisions. This ensures cross-
agency compliance with data standards and best practices and facilitates better
coordination and communication between agencies and divisions. A Chief Data
Officer or Compliance Officer could fill this role, but it’s important that they are
not only well versed in modern data management but also have subject matter
expertise and an in-depth understanding of agency needs. This ensures that the
data infrastructure developed is rooted in the agency context and responsive
to changing agency needs. Investing in expertise and management reduces
inefficiencies, facilitates resource sharing, and supports a holistic approach to
systems management.

I N V E S T I N M O D E R N I Z AT I O N A N D T E C H N O LO GY A D O P T I O N
T R A I N I N G FO R WAT E R L E A D E R S
On-site technology adoption training would help public agencies overcome the
barriers to modernization. On-site training allows for one-on-one meetings with key
leaders, as well as collaborative working sessions with agency staff from different
divisions and with differing levels of authority. This type of training ensures that
agency leaders, IT staff, and staff who use or produce data are working towards
shared goals. Completing the training in their own data environment also provides
an opportunity to work through potential challenges during the training, preventing
projects from being stymied before they get off the ground.

The Nicholas Institute Water Policy Program is currently developing a Technology

Adoption Program modeled after the Harvard Evidence for Policy Design program,
which would provide on-site technology adoption and data modernization training
for public agencies. With this program, we aim to narrow the cultural divide between
different generations of technology, equip leaders with the knowledge they need
to engage with their staff about modernized data infrastructure, and help assuage
the resistance and fear surrounding technology adoption.

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M OV I N G FO R WA R D
The Technology Adoption Research Project revealed a strong desire for data
infrastructure modernization within state agencies that manage water resources
across the US. It also illuminated significant barriers that have prevented many of
these agencies from implementing large-scale data modernization projects in the
past.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law on November 15, 2021,
commits $55 billion to modernize America’s water infrastructure. As part of that
investment, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will receive $15 million
for grants to pilot projects aimed at more easily sharing information on water
quality, water infrastructure needs, and water technology between state and local
agencies. The law states that the “Internet of Water Principles developed by the
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions” should guide these efforts.
This funding will help state agencies overcome one of their most substantial
barriers to data infrastructure modernization, a lack of funding.

The IoW aims to help state agencies overcome the other barriers revealed by
our research through our Technology Adoption Program and by developing other
resources and tools to support state agencies as they work towards modernization.
Our goal is a future where decision-makers at all levels can access the data and
information they need to adapt to water challenges and ensure sustainable,
equitable, and resilient management of our nation’s water resources. We believe
that to achieve better water management you must first have better water data
management.

Photo by Arjan Wilmsen, Unsplash

Header Photo by Jack Anstey, Unsplash

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